Where's Rinoa
by ninjafairygirl
Summary: EDITED:where was Rinoa in the Kingdom Hearts games? well, since i wanted her in them, i'm putting her in. placed in the second game, as a filler or something, i don't really know...ah well. Read please!
1. We meet again

Hey guys! Some of you may know that this is not an original, but an editation (is that a real word? Ah well, it is now…*evil snicker, taking a marker to a dictionary*) of one of my previous stories. Trust me it's much better now. but you should know by now that I don't own. It is on FANfiction, after all.

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It was raining. Again. Cloud, Leon and Yuffie were stuck in Merlin's house, along with the rest of the gang. It had rained pretty much all week, and it didn't look like it was going to stop anytime soon. Leon looked out the window. Behind him, Yuffie and Cid were arguing about some ingredients in the dinner from that night, Cloud was sulking in the corner, Aerith trying to cheer him up; or at least get him to talk to her. Needless to say, Leon and Cloud both wanted some peace and quiet.

Leon knew it was raining, but he didn't care. Leon just had to get out of the noise in the house. Maybe getting a little wet would be a good way to clear his mind. Without a word, he left the house and stepped into the rain. It was cold compared to the cozy house, but the chill cleared his mind. He looked up to the sky and closed his eyes. Here it was quiet. Here, it was tranquil.

Leon liked it when there was quiet. He was reminded of the old days, in his old home. From time to time, he'd find himself thinking about those he had left behind. When he didn't mean to, he caught himself wondering why it was he that had survived, and not one of his friends. When the memories bubbled to the surface, he'd force them down. There was nothing to be proud of in running away.

After taking a deep breath, Leon looked back around the tiny area. The buildings were close together, and there was dust and dirt being turned to mud in the torrential downpour. Leon didn't miss one detail of the recognizable area. Especially not the silver glint of a nobody, floating by towards the market place. Calling his gunblade into his hands, he ran after it.

"If the rain didn't clear my head, this battle would, I guess. Must be inescapable." Leon shrugged.

With that, Leon chased the nobody through the rain. If one was around, there had to be more hiding somewhere. Chasing nobodies through the rain sounded better to him than going back to Merlin's house anyway. At least he could get something done.

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"Wow, it's really coming down, isn't it?" Sora noticed, stepping into the market place from the gummi ship. "Has it ever rained when we've been in here?"

"Not that I know of. Gosh, it's usually all blue skies. I wonder what's going on." Goofy mentioned.

"Hey, look! Heartless!" Donald pointed.

There was a small group of heartless converged into a spot towards Uncle Scrooge's freezer. They seemed to be huddled over something-something human sized. Through the darkness, Sora could see a hint of some blue. Adrenaline began to pump through his body, and he knew exactly what he had to do.

"I think there's someone there! They're going to turn into a heartless soon if we don't help! Come on!" Sora called out Oathkeeper and bounded into battle.

As the three picked off some of the heartless, more of the person was uncovered. Donald carefully shot blasts of fira on the shadow heartless with out hurting the person underneath them. When all the heartless in the area were destroyed, Sora bent over the person. She was what looked to be an older woman, but she had retained what must have been her childhood beauty. Carefully, Sora placed her head on his lap.

Her pale face was covered in dirt and splotches of blood. Sora let a little rainwater drop on her face so he could clean it. She looked a little bit like Tifa, but she had her own quirks. There was a slight smile playing on the edge of her lips, and she had a certain look about her that made Sora believe she was looking for something.

"Who do you think this is?" goofy leaned over Sora and the woman.

"Who knows. Do you think Leon would know her? She must live here after all." Donald reasoned.

Sora nodded, wiping a few last patches of mud off her face and neck. What had happened to her? As Sora cleaned around the neck, he fingered a small, silver chain that held a couple of shiny rings. Even in the dim light of the storm, he could tell there were intricate designs on it.

Whoever she was, she must have been through a lot. Her hair was matted with dirt, and hung freely around her shoulders. The woman was dressed in a long, blue overcoat. One of her boots was gone. She lay still, unconscious. With some difficulty, Sora and Goofy picked her up and started walking with the woman leaning on their arms in between. Donald walked behind; to make sure she didn't fall.

"Uh oh, fellas, I think we have company!" Goofy pointed to a single nobody, drifting towards the three.

"I'll take care of it!" Donald held up his staff and ran ahead of Sora.

Before he could cast a spell, the nobody was gone in a giant ball of flames. The heat reached all the way to Sora, Donald, and Goofy, it was so large. Sora looked to his duck friend. He was surprised. Usually, it didn't take that much to kill them off, and overkill wasn't something Donald usually did.

"Uh, good job, Donald" Sora hitched the girl further on his shoulders, as she was slipping.

"It wasn't me." he quacked. Goofy and Sora looked at him in confusion.

"What do you mean it wasn't you?" Sora looked to his feathered friend.

Leon walked up to the three and put back his gunblade. He was absolutely drenched. Sora hoped he hadn't been wandering about. Of course, it didn't take long to become sopping in this weather. Leon had a look of confusion on his face as he looked at the woman leaning between goofy and Sora. Her head was down, and her hair covered her face.

"who've you got here?" Leon placed his gunblade on his shoulders.

"I don't know. We found her over there in the marketplace." Sora reported.

Leon put his gunblade away and cupped his fingers around the woman's chin. He couldn't identify her if he couldn't see her face. As a member of the hollow bastion restoration committee, he saw many of the inhabitants of his world. When he looked upon the small face of the woman, he rubbed a small patch of dirt Sora had missed off the cheek. Instantly, flashes of memory came to his mind.

It was Rinoa.

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DUN DUN DUN! What is going to happen. How will Leon react? Please read and let me know how you feel about the story!


	2. This is Real

Alright, chapter two. So far this is going a lot better than I hoped. Enjoy it everyone! I don't own…

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"R-Rinoa? How can this be?" Leon grabbed her from Sora and Goofy and held her up by her shoulders. "I haven't seen Rinoa since the heartless overtook our world eleven years ago. Why is she appearing here? She's supposed to be on…"

"So you do know her. Let's get back to Merlin's house. I'm sure we'll be able to talk there without catching our deaths out in this rain." Donald suggested, ignoring what Leon was about to say.

Leon nodded and picked Rinoa up bridal style. They returned to Merlin's house in a matter of minutes. Sora held the door open as Leon walked in with Rinoa. All eyes turned to the door as the wet warriors entered. It seemed as if they hadn't even changed position since Leon had left, but now most of them took interest at what was occurring.

"Leon? Who is that?" Tifa grabbed the door behind the friends as they walked further into the room.

Leon kept silent as he took Rinoa over to the bed in the corner of the small house.

"Here, I'll go get some dry clothes for her." Aerith ran out of the room.

"You guys are probably going to need something to dry yourselves with too. I'll grab some towels." Yuffie ran out behind Aerith.

"No worries." Sora gave a thumbs up to Donald who cast a spell. Within seconds, all three were dry.

Donald cast the spell on Rinoa too. Leon gave a small word of thanks and sat down on the bed, Rinoa sitting on his lap, her head leaning on his chest. Leon stroked her hair a couple of times and sighed. He seemed to have a small smile on his face, but it was very faint. Sora guessed it was caused by something he remembered from long ago.

In no time at all, Aerith and Yuffie came back with the towels and fresh pair of clothes. Leon stood up and carried Rinoa to one of the adjacent rooms for Yuffie to change Rinoa's clothes. They were dry now, but they were still dirty, and had to be changed.

"So, what do you think the story is between Leon and Rinoa?" Sora asked Donald and Goofy.

"They were in love. Can't you tell by the way he acts around her?" Aerith blatantly pointed out.

"Leon? In love? Is that even possible?" Sora reacted.

"Sora!" Donald chastised.

"Sorry, but he doesn't seem to be the touchy-feely kind of guy." Sora defended.

"Well, he wasn't. At least not as kids." Aerith sat on the bed near the three. "Looks like it's time for a story. All right you three, gather round." Aerith began.

Cloud stayed in the corner, Tifa standing next to him. She had heard the story before, since she wasn't there at the time. Cid sat at one of the tables and Aerith got up to stand at the woodstove. Sora, Donald and Goofy sat down either on the bed or a chair that was nearby.

"Leon came here when we were all a bit older. I imagine we were about 19 at the time. Most of the time, he stayed by himself, although after a few months, Yuffie and I got him to tell us everything he would about his past. Apparently he had been at military school his whole life. If I remember right, he was actually from another world. Eventually, when our world fell to the heartless, and we moved to traverse town, he began to throw himself into trying to make the best of our situation. He actually smiled and became the Leon you met, after that." Aerith paused.

"Wait, hold up. So Leon isn't really from Radiant Gardens? So where is he from? How'd he get here?" Sora spat out questions.

"I don't really know. He only told us snippets of his past." Aerith answered. "But we did wheedle something about Rinoa from him. of course he never mentioned her again after our world was taken o-"

"I did that for my own protection. Besides, there are some things that don't need to be shared with the entire world." Leon came back into the room, Rinoa in his arms.

She was wearing one of Aerith's spare dresses. The dress was blue, with a skirt that came to her mid thigh. One sleeve stopped at her shoulder, while the other cascaded down her arm, flaring out as it did so. She wore black leggings underneath, and short black boots.

Leon took his spot back on the bed, with Rinoa still sitting in his arms. He nodded to Aerith to continue speaking. Sora got up and moved towards the door to make room on the bed.

"Ah." Aerith gave a quaint smile. "You know, this _is_ your story. Maybe you would be better outfitted to tell it."

Leon gave a little nod and started to speak. "I was born on a world not too far from here. I lived in an orphanage most of my childhood, with some very good friends. I lived a solitary life in the military school I was attending, until a sorceress tried to compress time and kill us all. To make a long story short, Rinoa was a large help in everything."

"So, how did you get here, then?" Sora was the first to speak after a few minutes of solid silence.

"Our world was falling to the heartless. We worked day and night to destroy them. Anyone who was ever a soldier was called back to duty. Many people lost their hearts. I don't know if the world was restored when you closed the door to darkness, but I'd like to think it was. After all, I left some good friends. Even so, I just know I got into a ship of mine and left. After a day of sailing, I found this place. The heartless were here, too. I fought with everyone. Unfortunately, as you can guess, we had to leave on my ship to Traverse town." Leon looked straight at Sora.

"We're lucky Leon had a ship. The gummi I was repairing at the time still wasn't finished." Cid added.

"So that's all there is to it, I guess." Aerith gave a weak smile.

There was an uncomfortable silence that filled the room. Sora was about to say something when Rinoa gave a small moan. She lifted her head and looked around the room. A smile lit up her face when she saw whom she was sitting on.

"Squall! I'm so glad you're safe!" she glomped the unexpecting warrior. They both fell to their backs on the bed.

"Squall?" Sora, Donald and Goofy looked at each other.

Both Leon and Rinoa sat up from their spots on the bed, and he helped her stand. Rinoa was a little shaky still, but she held on to Leon's shoulders. They looked into each other's eyes and embraced. Leon closed his eyes. He never imagined he'd have Rinoa in his arms again. They felt good after so many years.

"I'm so glad you're safe." Rinoa stated again.

"Who the heck is Squall?" Sora looked confused.

"Squall is Leon's real name. After the heartless attacked, he asked us to start calling him Leon." Yuffie stood from her chair. She had gotten back in a few minutes after Leon.

Rinoa pulled back from Leon's embrace. "Leon? Really? I know you call yourself a lion and all that, but why'd you have to go and change your name? What if I was looking for you here?"

"Well, I didn't think I'd see you ever again, Rinoa. Tell us what happened. How did you survive?" Leon looked to the girl in blue.

"I'll tell you, but you have to promise not to go by Leon anymore. It sounds ridiculous." Rinoa smiled. "Oh, and who do we have here?"

Rinoa looked around at Sora, Donald and Goofy. She turned to face them, accepting only an arm to lean on from Squall. She looked them once over individually before speaking.

"Well, I don't bite. Tell me, who are you three? You look really familiar."

"This is Donald and Goofy." Sora pointed towards each companion. "And my name is Sora."

"Yup. Sora here is the keyblade master." Goofy smiled.

"Keyblade…master? Is there a chance you're the one I've been looking for?" Rinoa came closer. "Call out your blade."

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we'll be getting to some other characters here soon, so just go ahead and review! (as if that makes sense…..)


	3. Hello, Goodbye

Well, here's chapter three! The story will really get rolling here, WHEE! Ok, don't own, lol.

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Sora pulled out the Oathkeeper and showed it to Rinoa. She gasped, as it seemed a long journey was finally over. She smiled at Squall and turned towards Sora, standing shakily under her own power.

"You've been looking for me?" Sora pointed to himself.

"Yes. You can complete my mastery of this evil sorceress inside me." Rinoa looked back to Squall. "You see, although the heartless took our world, I was able to wipe a bunch of them out. However, that took up a lot of magic. To make matters worse, the evil sorceress inside me tried to take over my body again. I think she destroyed a good bit of our home."

"Oh, Rinoa, I'm so sorry I wasn't there to help you." Squall looked mournfully at the girl.

"It's ok. There was this little mouse guy and a guy with silver hair there shortly after. They introduced me to this magician named Yen Sid who put the sorceress back in her spot. But it wouldn't last long. The two said I had to find the keyblade master. You wouldn't believe some of the places I've been these long eleven years, let alone these last few _weeks_." Rinoa finished.

"You saw Riku? And the king? Where?" Sora perked up.

"I don't quite remember. It was place called twilight zone or something. It could have been days or weeks though. I'm not quite sure." Rinoa waved. "But anyway, I'm getting off course. Sora, I need you to lock my heart so the sorceress can never get out."

"But Rinoa. You know that means you can never rest in peace until your heart is unlocked so you can give your powers away." Squall argued.

"Nope. Apparently if I lock my heart, she goes to the world of those pesky heartless. They were the worst enemies I've faced. They don't go down easily like all those monsters we've faced. Not in big groups, anyway." Rinoa smiled.

Sora shrugged, and with an approving nod from squall, he placed the keyblade in front of Rinoa. With a twist of his wrist, the deed was done. Rinoa's heart was locked. But in a flurry of white angel feathers, she disappeared.

Squall was silent, but there was anger and hurt in his eyes. He had already lost her once. He couldn't bear the fact that he had lost her again. And he had just found her after all of these years. There had to be something that he could do. Instantly, he turned to Sora.

"Let's go." He quietly motioned.

Before he answered, Sora pulled out the Oathkeeper to look at the keychain on the end of it. Kairi's lucky charm of tessela shells swayed back and fort in front of his eyes. He could remember every bit of the conversation when she gave it to him. Sora began to feel homesick, knowing Kairi, if she remembered him, would be waiting.

"So, where do ya think we should start lookin' for Rinoa?" Goofy brought the two swordsmen out of their thoughts.

"We're starting where it all began. I'm coming with you." Squall resolutely commented as he got up slowly.

"Can we even do that?" Sora whispered to Donald.

"Who knows, but he knows where to go, so we might as well take him. Besides, it sounds like he won't take no for an answer." Donald replied.

So, the group was ready to go. After saying goodbye, Squall took control of the gummi ship. They started to fly in an area Sora had never been before.

"Um, Leon, er, Squall, just where are we going to?" Sora blankly asked.

Squall didn't say anything, but continued to steer towards a big black mass far off in the distance. As they got closer, Sora saw that it was a big, red space ship. It dwarfed the gummi ship several times over. With ease, Squall landed the Gummi into the ship's loading dock. As they got out, Squall started to explain.

"This is the Ragnarok. It was an old ship I…fell into a few years back. I've never really had much use of it, but it'll do for our purposes now."

It was a long time before they reached the Blamb gardens. As Squall had mentioned earlier, it had taken a day, since there was no warp drive. They parked near a small town. There was a floating blue ship to their left. Squall looked to it and nodded.

"That's my old military school from the story. If it's here, that must mean the whole group is as well, assuming they stayed together. But if what Rinoa said is true and the sorceress went mad, they'd be drug back together, no matter what." Squall mentioned.

All of the buildings in the nearby town were in ruin, but there were teams of construction workers on the job. Sora imagined what kind of power this mysterious sorceress must have had. However, they were heading towards the blue ship, to their left. There was a large gate surrounding the entryway. Standing in front of them were two soldiers in blue uniforms. They stood adamant at their posts, with machine guns loaded and ready to use.

"Halt. Who are you?" One of the soldiers blocked the door.

"Squall Leonheart. I need to see what's going on." Squall stated placidly.

"Wait; did you just say Squall Leonheart? Impossible. He went missing when the monsters attacked eleven years ago." One of the guards looked at them suspiciously.

"And now I'm back. I need to see Quistis Trepe." Squall kept calm.

"You need clearance, Sir. Even if you are Squall Leonheart, which I highly doubt you are." The other guard scoffed.

With a sigh, Squall pulled out his gunblade. The lion insignia shone in the bright sunlight of the morning. Both soldiers looked at it with awe and silence. After the fight against the sorceress, all blamb students knew exactly who the gunblade with the lion insignia belonged to.

"Sorry for the trouble, Squall. I'll send for someone to show you to headmaster Trepe's office." The soldiers saluted.

"No need. I know the way." He put the gunblade back and walked easily into the ship.

Sora, Donald and Goofy followed in awe. What had Squall done to command so much respect from everyone he saw? As they walked up to the elevator. There were people of all kinds walking around in blue uniforms. From the other side of the room came the sound of someone trying to catch up with them.

"Hey! Hey, Squall! Is that really you?" a blonde man came running to them.

Squall gave a pained look, but then it turned to a smile. He turned to find the blonde man had arrived by them. He rubbed one of his hands on his pants and then held it out for Squall to shake. In the other hand was a hot dog with ketchup and mustard over it.

"If it isn't Zell…" Squall gave a little bit of a laugh before placing a hand in his friends to shake it.

"Is that a hot dog?" Sora looked at his hand hungrily.

"Yeah. They're always really popular with the students. The cafeteria is off that way, if you don't mind standing in line. But I would hurry if you want one. They go really fast." Zell smiled.

In an instant, Sora and Donald were gone, over to the cafeteria for the coveted hot dog. Goofy sighed and then headed over to join them.

"Well, they're certainly young, that's for sure." Zell laughed. "I wonder how they'll react when they see all the hot dogs are gone."

"Hey, go easy on them. They certainly have a long road ahead of them. Squall turned to his old friend. "They'll be fine. But in any case, I have to talk to Quistis. Would you come with me?"

"When'd you get so nice?" Zell joked.

"It's not impossible." Squall smirked. "I blame the kid."

"Well, whoever he is, I'm sure he's incredible, then." Zell clapped a hand to Squall's back. "Come on, we've got a lot to talk about."

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Kind of a long chapter, hope you enjoyed.


	4. a twist in our story

So I found that a lot of people are reading my story. Thanks so much for taking the time to! Remember, everyone in here belongs to people who are not me!

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Squall and Zell took the elevator directly to the top floor, where the headmaster's office was located. There hadn't been that many changes since Squall had been here last, when he was named temporary headmaster. When they reached the door to the office, Squall took a deep breath.

He knocked once and an attendant let him in. Squall and Zell rode the extra lift in silence, until they were standing in front of the director's desk. Quistis was standing towards the giant window, so she didn't see them come in.

She was wearing her dirty blonde hair in her traditional bun and a blue garden uniform. She turned around when she heard footsteps, but was surprised to see Squall. However, her wonder did not last long, and a knowing look filled her face. The years had been good to her; she was hardly changed from the last time in that battle field where Squall had seen her.

"I was wondering when you'd come back." She smiled.

"So you knew I left?" Squall placed his hands on his hips.

"Of course. I saw the ragnarok fly away. To tell the truth, I was a little angry with you. You knew we were having so much trouble with the heartless. But as time went by and our situation was a little less dire, I had a chance to think. You were acting on your instincts to survive." Quistis explained. "I had to do some of my thinking as a heartless. Unfortunately, I didn't quite survive the battle. However, I curiously was able to come back almost a year ago."

"Well, this isn't the only world I came lost. You wouldn't believe what I've been through." Squall admitted.

"But you're here. That means something is up, right?" Zell interjected.

"Yes. We're looking for Rinoa. She told us everything that happened. As soon as Sora locked up that sorceress inside her, she disappeared." Squall continued.

" 'we?' you must mean that kid who was with you earlier. The one I am anxiously awaiting to see his reaction when he returns." Zell smiled.

"Yeah. You'd be surprised how much you two have in common. Speaking of which, we'd probably go get him. He needs to be here too." Squall turned.

After a word from Quistis, an attendant came back in with a sulking Sora and Donald. A man with long brown hair and a cowboy hat and a girl in a yellow maternity dress followed them close by. She was rather large, and slower than the rest, but she had smiles in her eyes.

"Didn't get those hot dogs, did you?" Zell laughed.

"No, they were all out. Then Donald almost went bonkers." Sora noted.

"I did not." Donald huffed.

"Alright, alright, don't get your feathers in a ruffle. Irvine, Selphie, I'm glad you're here. Now we can have a little chat." Quistis mused.

Squall looked at Selphie and could only have guessed what happened in the time he had been gone. They had always been close, and Irvine was always trying to get on her good side. Irvine and Selphie must have tied the knot and settled down. Squall smiled for their happiness.

"Well, since we're all here, we might as well get started with the introductions. Squall, would you mind?" Quistis pointed towards the keyblade master and his friends.

"Sure. This is Sora, Donald and Goofy. Sora is the one who locked Rinoa's sorceress with his keyblade. The other two are friends of a friend." Squall pointed at each. "Guys, this is Quistis Trepe, Zell Dincht, Irvine Kinneas and Selphie Tilmitt."

"Actually" Selphie giggled. "Selphie Kinneas."

"Congratulations, by the way." Squall nodded.

"Thanks. She'll be our second." She held Irvine's hand.

He smiled at them. Even while there was a serious mission going on, it was nice to be able to sit back and catch up with friends. He hadn't seen them in over ten years, and the last words they had spoken were hardly worth remembering, as most words on the battlefield are.

He took a look around. Although everyone had grown older, they were the same people. It would be just like the old days. Like before Rinoa. Just the thought of her reminded Squall why they were there. They needed to find out where to find her. He didn't know if anyone here would have the information they needed, but it was worth a shot.

"Ok, so on to serious business. What exactly happened with Rinoa when she turned into a sorceress?" Squall steered the conversation to their main objective. "It could give us a hint as to where she is now."

"Well, it was just an ordinary day here, when all of a sudden Rinoa got this trance-like look in her eyes. Then she transformed to look like someone I didn't even know. We suffered a lot that day. mom and dad lost the house." Zell explained.

"Yeah, and then she went nuts on the rest of the town. You can see the results. We're almost done with one section, but it's still pretty bad." Irvine added.

"I see." Squall nodded.

Sora, Donald and Goofy watched while the older group talked. Although it was important, they had no idea what was going on. As far as they knew, Rinoa wasn't there, but she had inadvertently caused a lot of destruction. Of course, that didn't stop them from bolting into action when there was an explosion in one of the lower areas.

When the group got to the base of the garden, a fluffy brown and white dog was barking at what seemed to be a bunch of nobodies. In the midst of them was a woman who looked exactly like Rinoa. The only difference was that she had purple eyes instead of brown ones. Sora gasped when he realized she had a black hood on.

"The organization? When did Rinoa get turned into a heartless?" Sora skidded to a stop.

"You can't be serious!" Donald whined.

"Those aren't heartless, but they can't be good." Quistis pulled out her whip and began attacking the dusks that surrounded her.

"you might call these guys the heartless' cousins. We call them nobodies." Squall replied.

Standing behind Sora, Donald and Goofy was Zell and Irvine, who now had a shotgun. Selphie was standing behind him, but there probably wasn't much she was going to be able to do. Squall had a look of terror mixed with anger on his face.

"Well well, the gang's all here. Good, I guess I won't have to scout you out now." the Rinoa nobody turned and gave a small laugh. "It'll be like taking candy from a baby. Too bad I can't take care of you, squirt, the organization still needs that key of yours."

She moved her hand and summoned a white crossbow that sat on her arm. It had feather designs on it and gold arrows. She aimed it towards Squall. The arrow let loose and flew straight for it's target. Squall couldn't move. He was still in shock.

"Watch out!" Quistis yelled, pushing Squall out of the way. While in the process, taking the arrow to the arm. They were lucky it didn't go deeper than it did.

"Quistis! No!" Zell yelled. He stayed in place.

"Are you ok?" Squall asked his former teacher.

"Yeah…" she breathed, holding her arm. "Just a flesh wound."

Selphie ran over and took Quistis behind Irvine. She then began to clean up the wound and dress it. This woman who looked like Rinoa would have to pay. Squall stood up and pulled out his gunblade. With eyes full of hate, he lunged towards the woman.

"Yes, that's right Squall. Hate me. Build up all your rage until you can't hold it anymore. I will pick off each of your friends, if necessary." The woman laughed and flicked Squall away.

"Don't listen to her, Squall! She's trying to steal your heart!" Sora yelled.

Squall swung his sword at the woman. Her eyes turned a brown color, and she got a pained look on her face. Before anyone could stop him, Squall directed his attack elsewhere. When his back was turned, she shot another arrow at his back.

Sora threw his keyblade in time to throw the arrow off course. He then leaped into action, trying to hit the woman with Oathkeeper. She was fast. With a couple of words, she froze Donald, Goofy, Zell and Irvine. Speedily, she then drew another arrow and pointed it straight for Donald.

Sora lunged for her on the front while Squall got his bearings back and attacked from the back. Rinoa's Heartless spun around, and ducked to the ground, causing both swordsmen to have to direct their attacks in a split second. Unfortunately, Sora wasn't fast enough and he hit Squall square in the chest.

"I think that's good enough for today, don't you?" Rinoa's nobody surveyed her work.

Everyone was stuck in time, doing what they had been a minute before. Quistis was still getting her arm fixed by Selphie, who had become the healer in the party. Irvine had his gun pointed for the nobody's head, and Zell was in a stance, ready to leap at the next opponent. Sora looked and saw Donald, as he was in the middle of casting a spell, and goofy, as he was reaching in his pocket for a potion. Squall lay on his back, unmoving except for small gasps of air. With Sora alone, there was no way he could win.

All of a sudden, a blue arrow came from out of nowhere and hit the nobody in the shoulder. When Sora turned around, he saw Rinoa running from the direction of the garden. The dog from earlier sat on her arm, where an arrow should be. In a swift movement, the animal was catapulted, and headed straight for the nobody. Instead of hitting the target, however, the nobody simply placed her arm in front of her and slowed the dog's progression until he stopped right in front of her.

"Of course that's not me. I look ten times better than that." Rinoa stopped by Sora. "We can take this imposter."

The nobody scoffed and opened a dark portal. The nobodies around her that had previously done nothing were moving around those who were frozen in time. No doubt they would attack while the nobody made her getaway.

"Maybe you'll get me next time. Until then." She smiled, violet eyes sparkling.

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The plot thickens! Thank you to my reviewers! Until next time!


	5. memories come back to haunt

Okay, so I own nothing! But here's the next chapter of the story. I'm sorry it took so long to get up, but I've been really busy lately, and I actually had to post this off the time when I wanted to get it up. But enough of my drivel, let's get started, shall we?

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Time seemed to start again, and the soldiers began to fight the shadows Rinoa's nobody left in her wake. Sora rubbed his head as he sat up. It seemed as if this nobody was working for the organization. But what could they want with Squall? And why did it look exactly like her?

Rinoa rushed to Squall's side and helped him sit up.

"Watch your aim." He huffed to Sora.

"Sorry about that." Sora replied.

In no time at all, the shadows were dispelled and everyone gathered around Rinoa. They needed answers. And it would be good to have them presently. No buildings were destroyed, for they had fought in the field between the town and garden. There would need to be a bit of work to the garden, since the bottom part was blown in the explosion that warned them of that villain's presence. The sun shone high in the sky, and yet, no life could be seen for miles around. All traces of human life remained inside blamb garden huddled in areas of safety. They were merely waiting for life to return to normal. Or some semblance of what normal should be.

"I'm so sorry. This is all my fault." Rinoa sighed, as she helped Squall to his feet.

"No, Rinoa, it wasn't you." Sora tried to console her.

"Don't say that, Sora. I need to take responsibility." She looked blankly forward.

"But you don't understand." Donald quacked.

"Yeah. I'll bet ya the organization had it out fer ya from the start." Goofy agreed.

Rinoa blinked in confusion. No one in the group from this world knew about the organization, let alone the difference between the heartless and the nobodies. Needless to say, there were plenty of questions that needed to be asked- questions that only the travelers could answer. Without much deliberation, they headed up to Quistis' office, where she ordered lunch to be brought up straight away while they talked.

Squall let Sora take care of the explanations about the nobodies and heartless. He threw in a word about king Mickey and Riku, but they hadn't seen anyone around like that. Even though disappointment was evident in his countenance, he continued. While it would have been nice to have a clue to point them in the right direction, Sora knew they had bigger fish to fry at the moment.

Squall looked at Rinoa. She seemed fine when they walked in. now she was pale- much more so than usual- and her eyes had a glazed over look. Squall knew something was wrong. For a sorceress of her caliber, Rinoa never acted like this when something important was going on. Something had to be wrong.

"That's what happened." Rinoa whispered. Sora stopped talking and all eyes were turned to toward the girl. "That's exactly what happened to me. I can remember it now."

Rinoa's eyes glazed over to a point that she could have been sleepwalking. It was like she was focused on some point in the past. She moved her lips, ever so slightly. No sound was coming out, but she was saying something indeed. She began to emanate some sort of light from her body. She fell limp in Squall's arms, and the room was transformed.

Instead of Quistis' office, they were now standing in a grassy plain on a cold, clear night. Sora felt the autumn breeze on his face, throwing back the reminiscent smell of wildflowers and honeycombs. He had smelled that scent before. But where from? Such flowers that carried that scent didn't grow on the island. However, he instinctively somehow knew that that scent was familiar.

They had been here before.

"Sora…." Donald squeaked.

Looming behind them was Castle Oblivion.

Rinoa disappeared from Squall's arms, causing him to gasp and look around. There was a certain shimmer in his eyes that shone determination, and a hint of anger. Wordlessly, he looked to the group, who had no answers for him.

The group found themselves in an open area, just in front of the castle doors. They didn't know how they got there, but they knew it must be important, if they were truly all seeing what they thought they were.

"To find is to lose, and to lose is to find." Sora murmured.

"Where'd Rinoa go?" Zell looked hurriedly around.

"We were just in my office, weren't we? Somehow we must have been transported to another time. I can even smell honeycomb." Quistis breathed. "What power."

Behind them walked up none other than Rinoa. Squall ran to her, and tried to grab her shoulders, wake her from this dream. But to no avail. She didn't seem to see or feel him at all. Undaunted, she placed her hands on her hips. "This must be the place." She said to herself.

"I read about this once. Heck, we even experienced it. Rinoa must be using the same kind of magic Ellone had. She's sending us back into one of her memories. She must be quite the sorceress, if she can pull this off." Selphie grabbed Irvine's hand.

"Let's go. We need to follow her in order to see what happened to her." Squall sprinted until he was able to walk side by side with the memory Rinoa.

The castle doors opened by themselves, just as they had when Sora, Donald and Goofy had been there last. The three got the same reminding chills that they had at that time. Just to be back in the place where so much happened….

Once the door closed and the entire group was safely locked in the castle, it disappeared in a ray of light. The memory Rinoa didn't seem to notice it, but everyone else did. In the middle of the hall was a single card. It was the only part of the room that had any kind of color, as the rest of the hall was a sheer white, like an envelope around the people.

The card was blue with a black background. A picture of a field took up a majority of the face. Rinoa picked it up and stared at it. She seemed to break free from some trance. She looked around in confusion, dropping the card.

"I wouldn't drop that if I were you. It is your ticket out of here." A voice seemed to come from all over the hall.

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Ooooh, what's going to happen next? Find out next chapter. Thanks to those of you who are taking the time to read this! If there are any worlds you wish to see Rinoa visit, just tell me in a review!


	6. Rinoa's story

Here it is, after a long wait. Remember, I own nothing.

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The voice seemed to echo from all around Rinoa. But Sora wasn't confused. He knew exactly who that voice belonged to. It was none other than Marluxia. Of course this was a memory, so he would be alive, but the very thought of it made Sora sick. After all he had put them through. Sora was glad that he had gotten rid of the flower skilled nobody.

Hastily picking the card back up, Rinoa tightened her grip on it. She was angry, Squall could tell. The voice only began to laugh, until it faded away, and a door appeared. Rinoa broke into a run at it, as if the voice was behind it, waiting for her. The rest of the group followed suit, as they were pulled along for the ride.

What lay beyond the door though, was a surprise. Sora was expecting a bustling city, or at least a small town. However, he found himself in a vast field, covered to the brim with white flowers. It was night, and the cool summer air wrapped itself around them in a breeze that brought up the scent from the flowers. Based off what he had seen so far, there was no way they could be in blamb. They didn't have this expansive kind of a field, did they? The moon shone bright, full and round. Rinoa looked up into the star-filled sky and realized exactly where she was- or thought she was. A single tear rolled down her cheek, and her shoulders started to shake.

Without a word, she dropped to her knees and sobbed. Squall wanted to help her, but he was only a ghost here in this memory world. If he tried to touch her, it'd be like a wisp of the breeze, biting at her exposed shoulder.

"Why did you leave me?" her voice was small. "We could have fought them together! Why did you go?"

Rinoa's voice was growing louder until it reached a yell. "You coward! You could have fought! You should have fought! We needed you! Zell, and Quistis, Irvine and Selphie! We needed you!" her voice dropped back down to a whisper. "I needed you."

She looked up to the pale moon, as the wind picked up, taking flower petals with it. She grasped one as it turned into a feather. Her tears had slowed to a trickle as she sat there, completely out of energy.

"You coward. Why did you have to go? We would have made it. Maybe. You know, our world fell. I'm not sure how I made it out of there; I think Quistis sent me off before they ripped out her heart. She had such a gentle heart, you know?" the sobbing picked back up. "I woke up here and waited for you. I waited and waited until I couldn't anymore. And then you know what I did? I wrote you letters. 84 to be exact. How many did you get? They had my seal on them; you had to know it was mine." Rinoa spoke in a hushed tone now. "No matter how long you take, I'll wait for you, Squall. Even if I have just enough energy to tell you all of this, and that's it, then that's what I'll do."

From behind Rinoa, heartless were emerging.

"Rinoa!" Squall yelled, running between them. But to no avail. He was just a visitor, a shadow.

As a shadow, he had to watch as the smallest heartless tore into her and retrieved Rinoa's pure heart. It wasn't that she had no energy to fight them; she had some left in store. But it had been quite some time, and she had no idea where to go. There was nothing for miles around. No one. She lay on the ground, in their field of promise, only to let the heartless devour her. Slowly, she seeped into the dark abyss that was waiting for her. When they were done, all that was left was a lifeless corpse.

A dark shroud came over her, and then moved to the left of her body. It covered the area for a moment, and then disappeared, leaving the nobody in its wake. She got up, scoffed at the lifeless girl on the floor, and joined Marluxia, who had just come for her. Meanwhile, Rinoa lay still, wrapped in a comatose.

The memory moved into a dark place. However, not everyone was carried into it. Everyone except for Squall and Sora were returned to their bodies, waiting for the time when their friends would return from the nightmarish memory.

The dark atmosphere made the whole earth seem cold. Sora, Squall and Rinoa were stuck, wandering around in a no man's land, oblivion. Not a word could be uttered between the two swordsmen. There was a pressure sitting atop their chests, making it hard to even breathe. But then they caught sight of the girl, wandering all alone in this horrid place.

Squall reached out for Rinoa. He expected only to move through the girl, but when his hand reached her arm, he could feel the cold and clammy skin through his glove. Immediately, he wrapped the girl in an embrace so tender, and yet as protective as one's first baby blanket.

Within minutes, she began to warm up, and her eyes opened. Squall and Sora had no way to know if she could see them, but her face softened as she looked up. Feeling the warmth, she nestled closer to Squall as he tightened his embrace. A light shone from the distance, and began coming towards them. The next thing that they knew, they were sitting back in Quistis' office. Once again, Rinoa was in Squall's arms, and everything was the way it was before they had left for the memory.

Rinoa was asleep, and the rest of the gang was waiting to hear what had happened while they were still in the dream. With sketchy details, Squall told them.

"And that's how it happened." he finished.

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That's it, folks. I just kind of typed this up in a hurry, so I hope you like it. Sorry it took so long to upload.


	7. the next move

With a stir, Rinoa awoke. Squall held her up, so that she would be able to speak with everyone. As soon as she was able, she began to speak.

"You saw my memory, didn't you?" she asked.

"Yes. And I'm sorry for what you had to go through. But that doesn't finish the story. What happened next, Rinoa? How did you get from the flower field to Yen Sid's castle?" Sora inquired.

"As soon as I awoke, I found a black portal waiting for me. There was no where else to go, and I had run out of energy, so, I took it. Waiting on the other side of the door were three kids, who helped me until I met the mouse and silver haired warrior." Rinoa searched her memory banks as best as she could.

"So that's who that nobody was." Quistis mused.

"The story doesn't end there. After seeing Yen Sid, I traveled around a little, looking for Squall. I knew that if I could just find him, everything would be alright. I never imagined this would happen." Rinoa confessed.

"So then, how did you get here?" Irvine put his arm around his wife.

"I have the power to travel from one world to another. A girl named Namine showed me." She carelessly replied.

"Namine….?" Sora noted to himself.

Lunch interrupted them, so they all sat down to eat. The small office was crowded, but it was the only place they could talk in confidentiality. The question that was on every one's mind now was 'what now?' there was a grim realization that there was no real plan here. Only memories of the past.

"Well, this nobody does need to be dealt with." Sora began.

"Yup. That's what we gotta do next." Goofy replied cheerfully.

"Huh?" Zell arched an eyebrow.

"It's our next move. With the organization still around, there can't be any good from their having another member. We have to finish her off for good." Squall stood.

"Count me in." Rinoa looked to him, eyes full of determination. "There's no way you're going on another adventure without me."

"But, how do we go about doing it?" Donald asked.

"We'll figure something out." Quistis mentioned from behind her desk. "We have to."

They all nodded in silence. There was no way to tell what Rinoa's nobody was up to. First, they had to figure that out. If they could find out where she was going to attack next, they could intercept her and have the decisive match. However, there was no way in knowing where the match could be.

"What if she attacks another world?" Selphie whispered.

"We'll intercept her. We happen to be some sort of trouble magnet." Sora halfway laughed.

"Then it's settled. We have to leave Blamb." Rinoa smiled at the prospect of adventure.

"We?" Squall looked to her.

"As I said earlier, you're not doing this without me. She _is_ my nobody, after all." Rinoa argued.

The two looked at each other. They were in heated argument that seemed to be happening with a single look. After a long minute, Squall gave in. they decided that they would go to some worlds and try to find the nobody. However, not everyone could go. Quistis was duty bound to the garden, and had to stay. For obvious reasons, Selphie chose to stay as well. And if Selphie was staying, then so was Irvine. That left only Zell, who was more than happy to go, at Donald's reluctance.

"We have to protect the world order!" he yelled.

"Oh come on, Donald!" Sora begged. "We're already doing so by bringing Squall and Rinoa. What's one more?"

"No!" he stayed firm.

Sora was about to give some rebuttal, when Squall interrupted him.

"If you disagree with it, then stay here. We're going."

And with that, the next step was planned.

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And that's how the cookie crumbles! (sorry, mom's making cookies, and they smell REALLY good…..) hope you guys liked this!


	8. Traverse Town

Well, being how busy I am, and the fact that I can only work on this during the weekends, I hope this chapter isn't too bad. I'd like to give out a quick thanks to wishingdreamer5, for the kind words and push to continue the story. And so now, on to chapter 8!

"Ah man! I can't believe I forgot that!" Zell smacked his hand to his face. "I can't go with you guys. I want more than anything to go, but tomorrow is the first set of seeD exams, and I have to see my students through it."

Zell punched the air a couple of times and shifted his weight from side to side. He had become a teacher after their world had been restored, because it was the place he could be most useful. He had grown to love the position and stayed, even though the pay was better elsewhere. Sora could see that he was upset, but he didn't know what was going on, or what kind of exam a seeD test was. Nor would he ever, since they were already on their way out of the ruined city.

"It's alright, Zell. Do what you have to." Squall placed a hand on Zell's shoulder to calm his friend.

"Besides, we'll probably be back." Rinoa smiled.

With a sigh, Zell stopped moving and looked into his friend's eyes. Time had been good to Squall. He was a changed man, but he seemed to grow better with age. When they were teens, he was the reluctant leader, who had fate thrust upon him. Now, he seemed to accept his leadership position- enjoy it, even. Even so, he was still the same strength of body and soul as the man Zell had fought with on the battle field so many years ago.

"Oh, and it may do you some good to ask Quistis out, instead of always watching from afar." Squall smiled as he boarded the Ragnarok.

Or, perhaps Squall hadn't matured as much as Zell had thought.

With a smile, Zell waved to the ship as it took off, flying magnificently into the cloudless sky. The Ragnarok was like a shooting star, making its way back into the heavens, from whence it came. Within a moment's notice, all was back to the way it used to be. Who knew when those two were coming back, if they would at all? Even so, if they never were to return, Zell knew all would be well. And perhaps they would meet again. After all, he had come back the first time. The future was always open to new opportunities.

"So, where are we going?" Donald asked when Squall took the pilot's seat.

"Why not traverse town?" Rinoa suggested. "I rented a little room in the second district while I lived there."

Everyone stared at the sorceress.

"When did you ever live there?" goofy asked.

"Well, I found myself there when I recovered my body from being a heartless almost eleven years ago. Then, after living there off and on, I wound up in twilight town and met people I believe you're looking for. They called themselves Mickey and Diz. I was never told the name of the man with silver hair. I learned a lot."

"You saw riku?" Sora stammered.

"You saw the king?" Donald and goofy chorused.

"That's who they said they were. Anyway, in this last year, I've been waiting for Sora to wake up, so he could lock my heart. You weren't there, so I traveled to another world." Rinoa answered.

"Wait, then why were you all roughed up when we found you?" Sora remembered.

"I had stumbled upon a world of darkness with heartless. I made it out, but only barely. Rinoa replied.

"Hey, we're here!" Goofy pointed.

Sure enough, Traverse town sat in front of the group. It had certainly been a while since any of them had been here. But this is where it all really started. There were so many memories attached to this place. Nostalgia washed over Sora like a tidal wave on the sands of destiny islands.

_Kairi had been here last time too._

Without any trouble, squall packed the Ragnarok and they headed to the one room apartment Rinoa still had in her name. Nothing seemed to have changed since Sora and his friends had been here last. A breeze stole though the air and the stars shone crisply in the evening sky.

Bushed, the boys quickly fell asleep, leaving only Rinoa and Squall to remain awake. They sat side by side, in the corner of the far end of the room. They sat in silence, so as not to disturb the three as they rested. It had certainly been a long time since any of them had gotten a decent night's sleep, so a chance to do so in safety was a welcome thought.

"Couldn't sleep huh?" Squall looked at Rinoa, who kept her knees drawn up to her neck, as she doodled on the ground with her finger.

"I don't imagine so." Rinoa answered, not moving her gaze.

"Are you ok?" squall held up a hand to her hair and stroked it gently.

After a moment, Rinoa got up and moved over slightly, so she could sit in Squall's lap.

"I feel safe here." She said simply, wrapping her arms around Squall's neck.

"It has been a long time, hasn't it? I mean since we sat here and just talked, like we're doing now." Squall held Rinoa in his arms.

"Too long." Rinoa replied. She was about to say something, but instead, she cast her head down in a forlorn look and whispered, "I did something bad, didn't I?"

For the moment, Squall remained silent. Without asking, he knew exactly what nightmarish event she was talking about. He tried to picture exactly what went through her mind when it happened; how she was probably able to see her hands turning each and every one of her loved ones into mindless heartless.

"Eleven years ago, the city didn't look that bad. In fact, I believe Headmaster Cid had something really big planned. But then he and his wife disappeared, turned into heartless, I suppose. They went missing right around the area where the heartless started coming from. When Quistis took over, things just went from bad to worse. Everyone helped, but…" Rinoa explained. "And that time during the battle when….when I wasn't myself. I did horrible things. It doesn't make a difference how many heartless were destroyed at my hand. I couldn't get those people back."

Rinoa was next to tears as she slowly came up with the words to say. The truth of the matter was almost too hard to bear. To hear herself say it….made the truth seem heavier.

Squall didn't answer. From what selphie, who watched as Quistis, Zell and Seifer were all turned to heartless, had said, it had been the sorceress that had destroyed so much. She was the one who singlehandedly took over the heartless army and bend them to her control.

It was an old soldier named Laguna, and Squall's 'older sister' Ellone who had saved what was left of the area and it's peoples. While Laguna fought the sorceress, Ellone used the last of her magic to seal her away until Rinoa could find Yen Sid. He then strengthened the seal, until Rinoa would be able to find Sora. Somehow, they all managed to end up here, where it all started.

Rinoa layed her head upon Squall's chest and took deep breaths. To take life one day at a time seemed to be the only way to live, at the moment. Rather quickly, she fell into a deep slumber, tears still inching their way down her cheeks. With one fluid motion, Squall picked up Rinoa and placed her on the single bed. Then, without further ado, he dropped to the floor and fell asleep himself.

"Rinoa…come to me. Leave your bed and tell no one." A voice rang out. It was smooth and melodious, and clear as a bell. With its sweet ringing, Rinoa was drawn from her bed.

The voice seemed so entrancing, as if it were perfectly safe to do as they wanted. Even though she didn't know who it was that was calling her, she sensed that it wasn't safe. There was something about it that told her that this was a trap.

Rinoa inched her way out of the room. She was completely aware that it probably was a trap. But if the person who was calling her was who Rinoa guessed it to be, then she had to go. Her nobody was not Squall's problem to deal with; it was her own burden to carry alone.

The night was calm and peaceful, with glistening stars in the velvet sky. The day had been warm, as most days in traverse town were. However, as Rinoa reached the open plaza with the lighted fountain. She began to shiver. A cold wind had started by shuffling around her feet, until it had reached high above her head. Quickly, Rinoa clasped her arms around herself. Tucking a hand in her long sleeve.

"You probably shouldn't be out, if you don't like the cold." An all too familiar voice advised.

"So you were the one calling me" Rinoa turned around to see her nobody.

"Caught on quickly, I see." She smirked. Underneath her unzipped organization cloak, she wore a long white dress, complete with lace.

"Do your superiors know you're here?" Rinoa pulled out her Valkyrie crossbow and aimed for the woman.

"Relax" the nobody held her hands up. "I don't work for those idiots. I've got something a bit more…personal to work on than what they have planned."

Rinoa glared at the woman. "And what would that be?"

"You mean, you haven't guessed yet? I'm surprised, since I _am_ you."

"Be quiet!" Rinoa yelled as she shot off an arrow, which was frozen in time by her other.

"Oh that's right. We do have some things different. Life for the fact that instead of sealing away those vast powers you have deep inside, I've embraced mine. Now, nothing can stop me." She laughed. "I can have whatever i- oh, excuse me- we want."

"Shut up! You know that the sorceress will only try to take you over in the end. What to do you even want with her?" Rinoa took aim once again.

"Isn't it obvious?" the nobody walked up behind Rinoa and whispered "I'm lonely."

Rinoa gasped as her face fell in realization. There was only one person she could mean. And he was asleep, unawares of the pawn he had become.

"If you do anything to hurt Squall-" Rinoa growled.

"My dear, I only want his heart. Besides, you recovered, why can't he? We could both be happy and never have to worry."

"But, you don't have a heart. How can you be happy?" Rinoa glanced at the woman.

"Ah, a minor setback. Besides, it's a small price to pay for what you did to me." She retorted.

"And if he doesn't make it?" Rinoa spat.

Rinoa's nobody smiled. "All the better."

Rinoa charged towards her other, but before she had the chance, she disappeared in a door of darkness. "By the way, dear, I've decided to call myself edea. Do call on me soon."

Alright, another chapter down! Sorry for the wait, I didn't have much time to work on it, but I hope you guys liked it.


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